Memoir Madness Photos: Chapter 47: Mo--Regrets

Jennifer, 7, ascends the L.A. Courthouse steps for a custody hearing

(March 1958)

The man on the step looks like Harley Semple (Dee Dee)

Harley and Olive Semple began custody proceedings against Mary Lou, the author's mother, but then Mary Lou dropped her objections and allowed Mo and Dee Dee to take Jennifer back to Iowa.

The Semples later adopted Jennifer

About the Author

Jennifer Semple Siegel is author of Are You EVER Going to be Thin? (and other stories).

She has taught Creative Writing and Literature at York College of Pennsylvania and Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje (Skopje, Macedonia).

Her fiction and non-fiction, including scholarly articles, have been published in various national and regional journals, magazines, and anthologies. From 1993-1996, she edited Onion River Review, a literary journal.

She earned her M.F.A. in fiction from Goddard College (Plainfield, Vermont).

In 2009, Semple Siegel served as a Fulbright Scholar in Skopje, Macedonia.

In addition to her teaching and own writing, her Fulbright project included helping to develop a new American Studies program at Ss. Cyril and Methodius University.

She currently lives in Pennsylvania with her husband Jerry.